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Downes eyes November return

Chesterfield defender Aaron Downes is hoping to return in November after suffering his second long-term injury.

By Chris Galea

Last Updated: 04/03/10 2:47pm

Chesterfield's sidelined defender Aaron Downes is hoping to return to action in November after suffering his second long-term injury in a year.

The Australian suffered cruciate ligament damage in his knee for the second time after making a comeback from his previous injury in January.

Downes will require surgery once again, ruling him out of the Spireites' promotion push this season, but he told skysports.com that he has set his sights on a return before the end of the year.

He said: "The injury can take between six to nine months to recover, but with this being my second time it will probably take nearer the nine months.

"Last time I played my first reserve game after seven months out and made my first-team return at eight months, so you are looking at that period, generally.

"However, some people take shorter than that to come back and others take longer, but with this being my second one I reckon we are looking around November time for me to return.

"That is if everything goes to plan and you can never tell whether everything will go smoothly or not until it happens."

The Spireites are looking strong contenders for promotion this season as they hover just two points away from the automatic promotion places and Downes is keen for his return to action to be as a League One player.

He added: "We are hoping to be a League One side by the time I return, but we need to continue this fine vein of form.

"We are hitting the form button at the right time because February and March are important months in the league campaign, so hopefully we can keep it going."